Valhanna's Hero Take A Leap
by OutlawedAngel
Summary: War is coming. A girl in disguise, ready to fight to her death. Lands fought over and lives taken. She must fight to save her hometown and discovers terrific secrets along the way. Join her in her quest to keep her homeland free from the Baron of War.


**Name:** Valhanna's Hero - Take A Leap  
**Author: **DaughterofPersephone  
**Rating:** T+**  
****Pairings: **Sasha x Jaryd / Andreyis x Lynette / Errollyn x Rhillian  
**Summary: **War is coming. A girl in disguise, ready to fight to her death. Lands fought over and lives taken. She must fight to save her hometown and discovers terrific secrets along the way. Join her in her quest to keep her homeland free from the Baron of War.

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**_Chapter 1_**

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Sasha awoke to the sounds of something _thocking_ on her window and hushed voices behind it. Rising slowly from her sheepskin blanket, she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and listened intently. Swinging her legs over the side of her bed, she gingerly placed her bare feet on the icy floor and stood. Taking in the temperature of her room, she guessed it was still in the early hours of the morning - not far past dawn.

Crossing her wooden floorboards, Sasha pulled back her sheer curtain and peered through the fogged glass. Through the mist, she could barely make out the lower farms and the harbour coast, her only beacons the lights from the lanterns glowing brightly from their posts outside nobility's chambers and important buildings in the harbour town. Opening her window the slightest she could, Sasha poked her head out the window and looked down.

Standing below her two storey window was her brother Andreyis and his friends Karl, Ryder and Illico. Through the dim light coming from the lanterns on the road, Sasha could see the gleam of sapphire, emerald, amethyst and gold sets of eyes. Her own green eyes rolled with amusement as Andreyis beckoned her down.

She pulled her head from the window and scurried around her room, throwing on her sheepskin pants, woollen blouse and leather boots. She quickly ran her whale bone brush through her long brown hair and used her twine to tie it up. Grabbing the rope she kept in the bottom of her draw of intimates, she tied one end onto one of the four posts of her bed. Securing it tightly, she threw the other end out of the window and waiting til it was shaken by her brother.

She swung herself carefully backwards – feet first – out of her window and snatched at the thick rope. Holding on loosely, as she got her bearings, Sasha slid down the rope a lot quicker than previous times. With practised ease, Karl swung her escape route back up through her window and bowed mockingly at the smattering of amused applause. His golden eyes smouldered with hilarity in the semi-darkness. A distant wolf howled at the fading moon, causing Illico and Andreyis to start. Ryder thumped his friends on the back as Sasha laughed good-humouredly.

Looking around her as they walked, Sasha considered each of her companions closely;

Karl, with his striking silver hair and gold eyes, was almost twenty-seven summers.

Ryder had ginger hair and striking amethyst eyes had just turned with twenty-four summers.

Illico was the spritely blue eyed, bronze haired boy everyone had adored over the expanse of his twenty-two summers.

Andreyis with his blinding platinum blonde hair and emerald eyes was only twenty summers (only two more than she).

Sasha was just eighteen summers, with her brown hair and emerald eyes that always glowed with something otherworldly. Andreyis had teased her that she wasn't blood related to him, but their eyes said different. His didn't glow with the same strange light, but they were the same shade of vibrant green.

As the group trooped over the hills of the Family Iredryn's farm, the animals were awakening and the cockerel looked just about ready to crow. The five wandered to the stables where the stallions were alert, the geldings waking and the mares still sleeping. Andreyis's mare Pyra was one of the few mares that decided to wake. Sasha's stallion Peglyrion was alert and his large head craning over his stall door to receive her strict attention.

The borrowed mounts that the other boys used were suddenly all alert as the cockerel sounded his alarm. Peglyrion, or Peg as he was affectionately called, whinnied. A clarion call, a wakening, from a powerful stallion. Sasha stroked his quivering nose, watching as her hand passed over his beautiful black face and repeated.

Andreyis unbolted Pyra's door and lead the stunning mare from her stall. Even in the dim light, her coat shone like a newly polished copper coin, her mane and tail floating gracefully like spun cotton-candy as she pranced after Andreyis. Following her brother's lead, Sasha unbolted Peg's door, and the stallion stepped out confidently.

His black coat gleamed in the lantern light, his mane, tail and points stood out against the light wood of the stable walls. The horses lowered their heads as he passed, following the girl and he nodded to each. Peglyrion took his position as stallion seriously, and looked out for his herd. His old dame snorted at him and he snorted back. He followed the girl because he wanted to; she never forced him to do anything. She always asked.

Sasha looked back over her shoulder at the big war horse and asked, "Are you coming or not Peg?" The great horse swung his head toward her and took two steps after her. Ryder and Illico laughed loudly at the spectacle. Sasha sent them a half-hearted glare as they continued to chuckle. Peg snorted warningly as he passed and the two boys looked suitably ashamed.

Sasha led the great black stallion into the wash bay and grabbed the hose that was coiled on the floor. She asked him to stand still and turned the nozzle, letting water stream out gently. Hosing the big horse down was easier with practise and by now, Sasha was quite good at it. The size of her horse never bothered her and she took care of him to the best of her ability.

Andreyis was scraping the excess water from Pyra's coat and talking to her quietly. The mare whickered in response to a statement he made. Sasha smiled a little at the exchange between horse and man. Pyra had been an abandoned filly when Andreyis pleaded with their parents to take her in. Small, frightened and more than a little clumsy, the small foal had followed Andreyis constantly. Now, that clumsy filly had grown into a beautiful mare that was graceful and never put a hoof wrong.

A cockerel's crow made the group jump and stumble. The dawn light was seeping over the mountains and the brightness started to creep over the pastures and through the doors to the barn. The horses whinnied in delight at seeing the group jumpy, and the boys brushed the dirt off their breeches. Sasha led Peg outside and let him loose in the field. He trotted off a few paces, before turning back to give his miss a light nod, then cantering off.

Andreyis let Pyra out soon after and the pretty little mare cantered off gracefully to join Peg under the apple tree. Closing the stable door and locking it securely, the group set out across the pastures back towards the house and to where their breakfasts were waiting.

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**A/N: **_This may be a little A.U. and some of the characters are NOT portrayed as they are in the actual book. Anyway, this is the first chapter and I hope you enjoyed :) And I know what you're all thinking but I will get to all the other stories. I promise._


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